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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Seattlite86, post: 3271829, member: 59737&quot;]Thanks for clarifying their mannerisms, which led you to call them punks. It does sound like they were acting like punks. </p><p><br /></p><p>I’m going to disagree with you on the idea that being prejudiced&nbsp; prevents people from being victims, sure it can help sometimes, but I think it can also lead to negative consequences on both sides.&nbsp; </p><p><br /></p><p>For all we know, one of them just inherited the coin from a recently lost grandparent. Kids (and adults) often act differently with friends. Perhaps the tag along is the punk and was being a bad influence on the other. Perhaps the people in the photo looked funny. As long as they didn’t say it loud enough for the dealer to hear, I see their comments as harmless. Also, perhaps one of them had a gun or a temper and asking insulting questions about whether “you two punks stole this coin” could’ve ended up making a victim of the dealer, for judging and encouraging them to be bad people. Imagine how you might feel as a teenager and you bring a coin in you inherited and the dealer refuses to buy it from you “because it’s clearly stolen and I’m going to call the cops”. I’m sure you’ll reply about how you’d have been much more respectful, but you’d be missing the point. </p><p><br /></p><p>I also feel like we are far too quick to put soldiers on pedestals and say that anyone who doesn’t worship them is a bad person. Maybe the guy actually is a war hero; I don’t know his story, but it really doesn’t matter if he’s a war hero or a beggar. He’s just another human in a photo and deserves the same respect and dignity as any other. I think it is ultimately a bad thing that we think soldiers deserve some sort of preferential treatment, where making fun of them is some despicable act and somehow worse than making fun of some other human being. </p><p><br /></p><p>I think a lot of people (myself included) are too quick to judge others and assume the worst of them. In doing this, we treat people negatively and then they respond to that negativity. Essentially, this mindset often creates a self-fulfilling prophecy. I find that my direct responses to people often upsets them and puts them on the defensive, bringing out qualities that they normally would not display. </p><p><br /></p><p>This all, of course, is just my opinion, and we are likely at some point just going to have to agree to disagree.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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